news Tank causes chaos at Bovington

[John Pearson]

John, i had no intention to doubt drivers skills. Surely he was an experienced tanker, Bovington personnel are among most skillful professionals in their alley.

I myself have had a clutch failure driving a T-34. The release bearing failed causing gear jamming. Since the mainclutch was out, i stopped the tank by pulling back steering levers that open differential clutches and connect brakes. The controls in T-54 / 55 are basically identical with T-34, although a bit more sophisticated. So, it just seems unbelievable, that all those controls, mainclutch, differential clutch, steering brakes and fuelpump offswitchlever linkage, failed at same time. All those controls are operated independently with eachother.

So once more, no disrespect towards the driver, i hope this incident didn't cause him to give up his passion towards tanks. And bottom line, he DID stop the tank and no one got hurt.

 

No offence taken I assure you. I understand that it was the front to rear clutch operating rod/mechanism that came adrift, jamming the steering lever on that side in the "drive" position. Both stopping and steering on T34/54/55 seems poorer in reverse than in forward, due to trailing brake shoes in reverse I think but with one steering lever in gear, it has a great tendency to continue to go and only a tiny tendency to steer but no tendency to stop. You have me with the fuel cock but I suspect it is not readily available (are they ever?) and anyway, I think it would have taken longer to drain the fuel in the system than in fact it was stopped by letting go of the brakes and removing the load from the cogs and knocking it into neutral.

So far as I know, he never drove a tank again, certainly he never did at Bovington.